The present invention relates generally to visual aids and more particularly to an optical device including a pivotally and removably attached lens assembly which can be repeatedly and precisely placed in a selected operative position without the need for refocusing.
Many people are employed in occupations that involve precision work performed at an arms-length distance, for example, surgeons, dentists, medical and other technicians, and machinists. Precision work is much more desirably performed if the work area can be significantly magnified as this reduces eye fatigue, improves working posture and increases the accuracy of the job. Moreover, there are people with serious vision deficiencies who must use vision aids in order to view objects that are either close-up or remotely located.
Accordingly, a number of devices have been developed which provide magnification of distantly located objects. Many of these devices combine a set of spectacles with a pair of telescopes. In some of these devices, each telescope is attached directly to its respective lens of the spectacles. One such device can be seen by referring to U.S. Pat. No. 4,929,075 entitled OPTICAL VIEWING SYSTEM issued to Eliakim on May 29, 1990.
Other devices have telescopic lens assemblies that are pivotally attached to the spectacle frame. An example of such a device is disclosed in U.S. Design Pat. No. 296,337 entitled DENTAL BINOCULARS issued to Caplan on Jun. 21, 1988. In this patent, a pair of telescopes are supported in a frame that is pivotally connected to a spectacle frame by a hinge arrangement. When the user wishes to view an object through the telescopes, the user flips the telescopes down in front of the lenses. When the user wishes to view conventionally through the spectacles, the telescopes are flipped up and away from the lenses.
A variety of devices for securing objects to eyeglasses or spectacles are also known. For example, there are many well-known clip-on devices for securing sun visors and ornamental fixtures to a pair of eyeglasses.
A problem associated with devices employing pivoting telescopic lens assemblies is that each time the telescopes are flipped-down into the operative position, the user must refocus each of the telescopes. This is because these devices do not provide a mechanism for accurately placing the telescopic lens assembly in the same position each time the lenses are flipped down. This can be quite an inconvenience especially if the user happens to be a surgeon, dentist, or a laboratory technician. In this situation, the user must interrupt the procedure or test being performed and refocus the telescopes or attempt to pivot the telescopes back into the same position as before. This is especially inconvenient, particularly during procedures where the surgeon or dentist is repeatedly flipping the telescope assembly up and down to look between the work area or patient, equipment, and/or personnel.
Another problem associated with pivoting telescope assemblies relates to the difficulty encountered when attempting to look around the telescope assembly in the flipped-down operative position. More particularly, the support frames used to mount the telescopes tend to obstruct a portion of the spectacle lenses. Additionally, these support frames centrally position the telescopes in front of the spectacle lenses when the telescopic lens assembly is in the flipped-down, operative position. Thus, if the user wishes to look through the spectacles in a conventional manner, the user must flip up the spectacles to the non-operative position.
One solution to the problem is found in U.S. Pat. No. 5,694,193 to Murphy, assigned to the assignee herein, which relates to a locking pivoting lens assembly with a hinge detent. The optical device comprises a spectacle frame with a pair of optical lenses. The optical device further includes a lens assembly pivotally attached to the spectacle frame which is pivotable between an operative position, and a non-operative position. A detent mechanism included in the optical device allows a user to repeatedly position the lens assembly into either position. The device, however, is attached to the spectacle frame, and hence, is not easily removable.
Thus, there remains a need for an improved optical spectacle device that employs a pivoting telescopic lens assembly that can be repeatedly flipped down into precisely the same operative position from a non-operative position, thereby eliminating the need to repeatedly refocus each of the telescopes, and which also is easily removable from the spectacle frame.
Briefly described, the telescope lens assembly of the present invention is removably mountable on a spectacle frame and includes a mounting bracket comprising a base and a first pair of fixed clamping arms; a telescope lens pivotally mounted on the base via a support bracket; a spring clip, comprising a handle, a second pair of clamping arms for engaging with said first pair of clamping arms, and two projections; a wire spring wound around each of said two projections which engages with the support bracket to allow precise placement of said telescope lens in an operative position. The support bracket has a flat portion on which the spring rests when the telescope lens is in an operative position, and has a detent in which the spring rests when the telescope lens is in a non-operative position.
The telescope lens assembly removably mountable on a spectacle frame includes an elongate bar member comprising a substantially planar surface with raised portions each portion defining an interior; a first pair of fixed clamping arms disposed substantially perpendicular to said bar member; a first platform comprising a substantially planar surface extending in a first direction from said bar member, and a stop which defines a recess, the stop disposed substantially perpendicular to the first platform; two second platforms extending in a second direction from said bar member, each of the two second platforms comprising a brace disposed substantially perpendicular to said bar member; a telescope lens assembly comprising a support bracket pivotally mounted on the first platform adjacent the recess; a clip member pivotally mounted by a double spirally wound spring adjacent the brace of each of the two second platforms and the interior of the raised portions, the clip member comprising a first post and second post for receiving the respective spirally wound portions of the spring, and a second pair of fixed clamping arms for cooperatively engaging with the first pair of fixed clamping arms, the spring member engaging the bar member to allow precise placement of the telescope lens in an operative position. The clip member also includes a handle. Preferably, the elongate bar member, the first pair of clamping arms, first platform, and two second platforms are of unitary construction.
The mounting bracket of the present invention includes a planar base with raised portions extending in one direction having semi-circular cutaway interiors; a first pair of fixed clamping arms extending substantially perpendicular to and extending in an opposite direction from the raised portions; a first platform comprising a planar surface extending in a first direction from the base along the same plane thereof, and a stop which defines a recess, said stop disposed substantially perpendicular to the first platform; and two braces extending in a second direction from the base which are disposed substantially perpendicular to the base. A telescope lens assembly comprising a telescope lens and support bracket is pivotally mounted on said the platform adjacent said recess by a support bracket comprising a flat portion and a detent. A clip member comprising a handle, a first post and a second post, and a second pair of fixed clamping arms cooperatively engages with the first pair of fixed clamping arms, wherein a spring member is spirally wound onto the first and second posts for pivotally mounting the clip member to the mounting bracket, and for retaining the support bracket of the telescope lens assembly adjacent the cutaway interiors of the raised portions.